Pope Francis is a pope of firsts: he is the first pope from the Americas, he is the first Jesuit to be elected pope, and he is the first pope to take the name Francis. He is a man of deep personal faith and he is profoundly committed to the Catholic Church, and he has a different pastoral style than his predecessor, Benedict XVI. When he was first elected, many people were unfamiliar with him – many of us thought, “WHO?” when his name was first announced. To help get a sense of who Francis is, lets explore a bit of his biography and some of the theological ideas that have become associate with him so far.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on December 17, 1936. His parents were Italian immigrants. He has four siblings; his father was an accountant and his mother was a stay-at-home parent. He worked briefly as a chemical technician. He became seriously ill in 1957, developing pneumonia and eventually loosing his right lung. Shortly thereafter, in March of 1958, he entered the Jesuits. He took his first vows on March 12, 1960 and spent the next nine years as a student of philosophy and theology at the San Miguel Seminary in Buenos Aires and as a secondary school teacher. He was ordained to the priesthood on December 13, 1969. Fr. Jorge served the Jesuits in a variety of posts: as master of novices and vice chancellor of the San Miguel Seminary (1971-73), as superior of the Jesuit province of Argentina and Uruguay (1973-79), and as rector and theology teacher at Colegio Maximo (1979-85). After finishing his doctoral dissertation in Germany, he is ordained auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires on June 27, 1992 and become coadjutor (an assisting bishop with the right to become the next bishop of a diocese) archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1997. On February 28, 1998, he is installed as Archbishop of Buenos Aires and is elevated to cardinal on February 21, 2001. On March 13, 2013, he was elected pope by a conclave of 115 cardinals.
In his few months as pope, Francis has made a significant impression on Catholics around the world. While it is obviously impossible to predict how Francis’ papacy will develop, it is interesting to note a couple of themes that are emerging so far. First and almost immediately, Pope Francis has displayed a personal style that is far simpler and less “pomp-and-circumstance-y” than his predecessors. On the evening he was elected, appeared without all of the regalia that marks a new pope, choosing just the simple white cassock. He asked the crowds to pray for him before he blessed them. Since then, he has stunned people with his acts of simplicity and humility: paying his hotel bill, choosing not to live in the papal palace, saying daily mass at the Vatican guesthouse, washing the feet of young convicts on Holy Thursday, and reaching out to greet people, especially children.
Second, Francis has reminded us of the church’s commitment to service. In choosing to name himself after St. Francis of Assisi, the pope has recalled for us that to follow Jesus means living a life of service, poverty, and simplicity. And, in living that life of service, the church is called to serve especially those who are the most marginalized and excluded – the sick, the poor, the exploited, the unloved.And third, along side of his emphases on simplicity and service, this pope is a very learned man. Like John Paul II and Benedict XVI, Pope Francis has an extensive background in theology and spent most of his career as a teacher – both at the high school level and at the graduate level. In addition, he spent a good part of his career guiding the formation of priests – both as novice master and as vice-chancellor and then rector of the seminary. Thus, to dismiss Francis as “merely a pastor” would be to ignore is long career as a teacher of theology and his commitment to ensuring that the church is well-served by its priests and theologians.
As Pope Francis continues his service as pope, we will come to understand more and more about his thoughts, his spirituality, his style, and his concerns for the church. And it will be an exciting time!
